English school board seeking public input on governance policies

The English Language School Board is seeking public input on proposed rules it follows to conduct business.

English Language School Board

At its monthly meeting Tuesday in Charlottetown the board gave first reading to a portion of its very own governance policies. It also took the opportunity to rescind the old, interim policies.

“The new governance policies have been developed to direct the English Language School board, to provide clarity between the board’s governance role and the Superintendent’s operational role and will focus on the end result for student achievement,” said Trustee Karen Redman in presenting the motion for first reading.

“The board governance policies encompass four main areas: Superintendent limitations which establish the boundaries for decision making, governance process which outlines the process that the board uses to accomplish its work and monitor its own tasks, the board-Superintendent delegation which indicates how power is delegated to the Superintendent, the Superintendent’s role and the authority and the accountability, and the ends policies which specify the intended outcomes for students,” said Redman.

That last portion is still a work in progress, the board was told, as “considerable research” is still needed to formulate intended student outcomes, said Redman.

The policies include guidelines for how the Superintendent is to treat students and staff, for example, or job descriptions, a code of conduct for board members and terms of reference for standing committees like the school naming committee.

“This information will be on the web site,” said Fred Osborne, chair of the board of trustees. “We will be looking for public consultation, feedback, on these proposals that are being put forward.

“The opportunity for the public to do that will be until Friday, Feb. 7 until noon,” he said.